Cucú Cantaba la Rana
Spanish Nursery Rhyme
Original Lyrics
Cucú, cantaba la rana,Cucú, debajo del agua,Cucú, pasó un caballero,Cucú, de capa y sombrero,Cucú, pasó una señora,Cucú, de bata de cola.
English Translation
Cuckoo, the frog was singing,Cuckoo, beneath the water,Cuckoo, a gentleman passed by,Cuckoo, in a cape and hat,Cuckoo, a lady passed by,Cuckoo, in a dress with a train.
History and Meaning
In this Spanish children's song, a frog sings under the water while people pass by in their finery. The frog's cucú starts every line. It sounds like the name of a cuckoo, which makes it an especially funny call for a frog.
How do you say it and sing along?
Cucú sounds like koo-KOO, with the stress on the last syllable. Rana is a frog, debajo del agua means beneath the water, and a sombrero is a hat. Bata de cola is a long dress with a train.
Have one group be the frog and call cucú. The other group sings the rest of each line. To make a new verse as a game, take turns inventing someone who walks by and saying what they are wearing.
The six lines here follow 100 temas infantiles in the Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes. Spain's Traditional Music Archive also documents a version with the same opening. Other versions change the passers-by or their clothes; the repeating frog call still gives everyone a way to join in.
Lyrics from nurseryrhymes.info